Mukund Sibi, University Distinguished Professor of chemistry and biochemistry, and Colleen Fitzgerald, vice president for research and creative activity, have been named fellows by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. They are members of a 2021 cadre of 564 scientists, engineers and innovators from the around the world who will receive the lifetime honor.
“The work of these two outstanding individuals clearly demonstrates how NDSU advances knowledge and service, which are hallmarks of a great land-grant university,” said NDSU President Dean L. Bresciani. “Their achievements exemplify the quality of education and research at NDSU.”
According to the organization, the honorees’ efforts to advance science applications are deemed scientifically or socially distinguished. Becoming an AAAS fellow is among the most distinct honors within the scientific community.
Sibi, Fitzgerald and other fellows were announced Jan. 26. New fellows will receive an official certificate and a gold and blue rosette pin to commemorate their election.
The organization’s annual meeting, which is scheduled for Feb. 19, will be held virtually due to COVID concerns.
Mukund Sibi
Sibi was honored for “pioneering work in enantioselective radical reactions and asymmetric synthesis and building biomedical research infrastructure through effective leadership and mentoring.”
“I am thrilled to have been elected as a fellow from a premiere scientific society in the world. It is a big honor because not only ones’ scientific accomplishments are recognized but also for contribution to the greater society,” Sibi said. “I am very happy and humbled indeed.”
Sibi joined the NDSU faculty in 1987 and has built an international reputation in synthetic organic chemistry – radical chemistry in particular. He developed the first catalytic method for carrying out enantioselective radical reactions.
He has received numerous honors, awards and lectureships, including the prestigious Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award from the American Chemical Society, NDSU’s Phi Kappa Phil Lectureship, NDSU’s Excellence in Mentoring Award, NDSU Chamber of Commerce Service Award and NDSU’s Fred Waldron Award for Research Excellence.
Sibi earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Bangalore University, India, and his doctorate at City University of New York.
Colleen Fitzgerald
Fitzgerald was recognized for “outstanding contributions to the field of linguistics, with a focus on language documentation, language revitalization and empowering Indigenous communities through collaborative work.”
“Garnering respect from one’s peers at this level is incredible and truly a pinnacle, Fitzgerald said. “In my case, it reflects collective efforts with Indigenous communities over many years. It’s also a powerful mark of respect for the importance of collaborative models in academia. If that expertise in collaborations ends up being useful in my current role as vice president for research and creative activity, it would be incredibly meaningful to play even a small part to enable greater opportunities for tribal citizens and Indigenous community partnerships at our university and in North Dakota.”
Fitzgerald came to NDSU as the vice president for research and creative activity on Oct. 1, 2021, from Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi, where she was associate vice president for research. Prior to that, she was on the faculty at the University of Texas at Arlington from 2008 to 2019, and for the last four years of that period, she served as program officer for the Documenting Endangered Languages Program, a joint funding initiative between the National Science Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Her research investigates the phonology (sound systems) of Native American languages, and she has done extensive work in Indigenous language documentation and revitalization, including NSF-funded efforts on Chickasaw with Joshua Hinson, the tribe’s language revitalization director. She was named a fellow of the Linguistic Society of America in 2021.
Fitzgerald earned her bachelor’s degree at Loyola University, New Orleans, and her master’s and doctoral degrees at the University of Arizona.
“Given the many researchers on campus with national and even international reputations and our new R1 status, I hope to celebrate more AAAS fellows in our ranks in the years to come,” Fitzgerald said.
Other AAAS fellows affiliated with NDSU as a graduate, faculty member, administrator or Extension staff include:
Michael Kessler (2020)
Gaylord Paulson (1985)
Richard Shimabukuro (1985)
Claude Schmidt (1981)
Robert Fitch (1966)
Sol Shulman (1966)
Raymond Bushland (1964)
Arlon Hazen (1964)
Roger Meintzer (1963)
Gabriel Comita (1960)
Eunice Kelly (1950)
Richard Thoms (1950)
Perry Trowbridge (1916)
John Shepperd (1911)
AAAS is the world’s largest general scientific society. The organization publishes the journal Science, as well as Science Translational Medicine, Science Signaling, Science Advances, Science Immunology and Science Robotics. It was founded in 1848 and includes more than 250 affiliated societies and academies of science.
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